Team Chutzpah Scrubs Up

by Katie on February 16, 2012

It started as an innocuous remark. In a review of Topman’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection I had made a jokey reference lamenting the dearth of decent facial scrubs for men, mentioning the Unilever brand, St Ives, whose Elements Daily Microdermabrasion scrub had suddenly disappeared from the shelves of my local stores. Little did I know that London’s PR sorority would step in to save the day.

This wasn’t the first time that an item I love had been discontinued. We joke about the Chutzpah “Kiss of Death” but there is a multitude of brands, products, pop groups, and television programmes which I’ve nailed my flag to, only to witness their early demise.

Max, Jessica Alba’s post-apocalyptic cloned warrior in the brilliant James Cameron-produced ‘Dark Angel’ barely lasted two seasons, as did the exceptionally sharp high school comedy/drama ‘Popular’ (imagine a more sarcastic ‘Glee’ only without all that infernal singing). I find myself less and less willing to invest in a prolonged story arc, in case the programme is cruelly ripped away from me.

Luckily for me, an employee at Topman put me in touch with her counterpart as St Ives. The scrub was not discontinued, but had been repackaged. This was brilliant news. You see, I like a scrub that feels like it is scrubbing. A butch scrub. I’ve tried everything, from Body Shop’s Japanese Washing Grains, to Philosophy’s sadly now-deleted Deeply Superficial enzyme scrub – another product taken before its time. Nothing comes close to the St Ives scrub, especially at that price-point.

The fine mineral crystals in the Daily Elements Microdermabrasion scrub not only remove dead skin, they also help reduce fine lines and actively improve the texture of your skin. Chamomile and Vitamin E help smooth the ride, relieving the area of application. My skin feels brighter, refreshed and, most importantly, soothed.

So this episode has a happy ending. Now, if anyone from Pret A Manger is reading, any chance of reviving the Fagioli Pasta with Chilli Pesto?

Article written by Lee Clatworthy (@TeamChutzpah) for Katie Chutzpah blog